Gretchen

Could it be you are comparing apples to oranges with the Hearst.

Rich

They are two totally different experiences . .

spirobulldog

I'm thinking it would be better in spring than over Christmas.
So, I'm thinking just do the regular house tour with audio.
Possibly doing an Architect or Butler Tour? also available is family and friends tour. The audio is an extra $10 and the other tours are $17 for anywhere from 1-2 hours.

I might consider doing one of the segway tours as you get to see a couple of hours worth of the grounds. The description doesn't give that much detail about each one though.

Finally, it seems Stable Cafe is close to the house.

We would not be interested in any of the wine tasting/tours anyway. But thanks for the info on that.

We don't plan on seeing any of Asheville during this visit. Just the Biltmore.

Rich

If you are experienced with the Segway, you just rent it and go off on your own . . if not, they have a hour lesson before takeing you on a guided tour of the grounds . .

There is a "Behind the sceane" tour that we did not take that gets a lot of good reports.

willowjane

Spirobulldog, I have been to both Biltmore and Hearst. They are each impressive in very different ways - I think Biltmore is much more grand. IMO Biltmore does take a full day to take it all in - I would encourage you to eat on the grounds. You don't have to do the wine tasting to eat down in that area and it is an easy walk from the house. I would choose one of the tours and not just rely on the audio. I have only done the candlelight tour and the audio tour - the personal information given is so much better in the special tour groups than just the audio. There was an exhibition of Tiffany glass the last time I went - I would encourage you to see if any special exhibits are being shown.
I would recommend that you go to the greenhouse and see the gardens - they are wonderful in the spring. I think the Segway tour would be a great way to see the grounds. I ran a race there one year (Biltmore 15K) and I couldn't believe how beautiful some of the grounds were that I had never seen. Don't just do the house.
Have fun!

spirobulldog

Thanx, we have been on a segway before.

Rich

That will alow you more time to see the grounds than we had . . there is some stunning sceanery

starrs

I have been to beth the Hearst and Biltomre. Other than both being big houses, they are very different. I can't imagine skipping the Biltmore. Sure a busload of tourists or kids can impact the enjoyment of any location, but that's no reason to skip a certain location. I've been to the Biltmore in every season and have only experience what may even be considered a crowd during the evening candlelight tours. The trick there is to approach the door a few minutes before the timed entry (done for candlelight tours) and they will usually let you in a bit early. If not, just hang back and let your timed group go on ahead. Enjoy looking around the conservatory for a few minutes and then continue on. The people will still be in the house but ahead of you. (Same strategy in any crowded tourist location. Works for me everywhere except the Natural History museum in NYC the day after Thanksgiving. That day the entire museum was wall to wall kids, with parents seemingly okay with the kids using the museum as an indoor playground.)